OPUS Mag

Jul 11 All Lives Matter?

*Disclaimer*All lives matter when the influence of White Supremacy is no longer present in the world. While we recognize that the only race is the human race, the powers that be continue to dictate a narrative that operates otherwise. Use of the "All Lives Matter" hashtag or any other variation such as "Blue Lives Matter" in lieu of "Black Lives Matter" will render your opinion null and void and automatically deem you as racist. Thank you.

America has a not too dirty little secret that it wishes to hide from the public. It seems to want to forget its atrocities of the past in an effort to push the nation forward into a non-existent utopia. America has a race problem so bad that even with all of the statistical data to prove such a statement the people still choose to think otherwise.

America also has pitted its poor and disenfranchised minorities against poor and disenfranchised white people. In doing so America's people will never realize it's true enemy, white supremacy. Racism effects not only so called minorities but so called white people as well. For all lives to matter, America has to first acknowledge it's intentional divide of races in order to capitalize on the economy. Crime isn't a racial thing; it's an economic thing. The fewer jobs, the more poverty, the more poverty, the more criminal activity. Unfortunately when it comes to sentencing, people of color are most likely to serve penalties three times worse than their white counterparts.

So why as a nation haven't we woke up?

The media that we continue to trust to deliver us the news continues to manipulate and control us. One minute you're a patriot the next you're a terrorist. Also, white people have been manipulated for generations to believe that they are superior in every way. Our contributions to society as a whole have been diminished to entertainment.

So how do we rise up?

Marching feels good for the soul but it does nothing. The days of walking the streets are over. It is time to fight with our dollars. We cannot afford to be lazy or make excuses to why we cannot, it is time we do or better yet don't. Don't spend with those who don't want our business. Don't spend with anyone who doesn't look like you. Don't ask for discounts because we look alike. Don't be afraid to sacrifice.

As much as we hate politics, votes cost. If you want your voice to be heard you have to pay to sit at the big kids table. Place your money behind politicians you trust. Campaign, fund raise, knock on doors, and make calls at every level.

Black people can no longer be afraid of guns. If you're in a open carry State or a state where you can be easily licensed, arm yourselves. Register and be recognized. If you want to be an American be as American as can be.

Stop making your money to leave your community. We complain about gentrification but as soon as we make a decent living we fly the coop. It may be too late for us in NY but it's time for us to buy back our communities. Get organized, stay put, and make sure we prosper.

We cannot afford to wait for the government to care if we matter or not. We have to show them that we do. Our pleas of justice and peace fall on the same ears of those who wish to destroy us. We have to take our fate into our own hands. For our lives to matter, we must pool the black collective into a super power. Because unity is what they fear the most.

"I was pretty much born with a pen in my hand. Writing came to me naturally just as art eventually did."

Brooklyn born and bred, lover of dope shit, and my beard has remnants of rich mahogany. Jay Z didn't lose to Em on Renegade, we were just too blind to see his greatness. I made it past ashy and I'm on my way to classy. I started a podcast because I got tired of the media trying to tell my people how to feel. It's just his ghetto POV.

"It's all about growth, If you're alive and you aren't growing what the fuck are you doing?"

"I was pretty much born with a pen in my hand. Writing came to me naturally just as art eventually did."

Brooklyn born and bred, lover of dope shit, and my beard has remnants of rich mahogany. Jay Z didn't lose to Em on Renegade, we were just too blind to see his greatness. I made it past ashy and I'm on my way to classy. I started a podcast because I got tired of the media trying to tell my people how to feel. It's just his ghetto POV.

"It's all about growth, If you're alive and you aren't growing what the fuck are you doing?"

Coeur Noir is an autofiction novel written by Al Patron. The title is Haitian Creole for black heart or heart of black, in reference to the traits of the main protagonist, Nikolas Daniel...who may or may not be based on Al Patron himself. A coming of age novel Coeur Noir will evoke emotional reactions ranging from but not limited to crying & laughter, all while detailing a path to greatness for Al Pa...pardon...Nikolas Daniel.